Social Media combines with traditional artwork for two weeks

The South Dakota Art Museum recently launched a new campaign to blend selfies with more traditional artwork in an effort to draw students into the museum.

The South Dakota Art Museum is holding a selfie campaign that runs from Sept. 22 to Oct. 6 where students can take a picture with their favorite artwork and post the picture onto Facebook or Twitter with the #artmuseumselfie hashtag and tag the @SDArtMuseum. The winner will win a prize worth $100 from the art museum gift store. 

“My goal of the campaign was to bring in more SDSU students into the museum to engage more with the artwork,” said Stacy Buehner, the marketing and development coordinator at the South Dakota Art Museum. 

Students can take a selfie with any piece of artwork that interests them. The art museum has a variety of exhibits. 

“I think that… going forward… we’re continuing to look at different things whether it’s social media or an event to keep the SDSU students engaged with us,” Buehner said. 

The art museum digitally advertises on Facebook and does various museum-related trends on Twitter. 

“Social media is a way to connect with an audience that may not have been engaged before,” said Cable Hardin, a visual arts associate professor. 

According to Buehner, the campaign was created because she had noticed that not many SDSU students were coming into the museum “on an individual basis.”

Samantha Berry, a fifth year senior history and French double major, is a student worker at the museum. She said most people she knows use Twitter and Instagram. 

“I think our generation is very technologically driven. I think it’s [the selfie campaign] a great way to build a connection between this college population and the art museum that is here on campus,” Berry said.

The campaign allows students to post on Facebook or Twitter; this allows students to have multiple opportunities to participate in the campaign. Students are able to take selfies in between classes or at the end of the day because the art museum has free admission. 

According to Berry, working at the art museum has been a good experience because it helped her to decide what she wants to do after she completes her undergraduate degree.

“I love it [the selfie campaign]. Anything that’s going to be a new way to engage with the works or a different avenue to bring people into us and connect with us is great,” said Jodi Lundgren, the coordinator and curator of exhibitions at the South Dakota State Art Museum. 

The campaign is to draw SDSU students to the museum and to utilize the opportunities the museum brings to campus and to students.

Lundgren said her favorite piece is called “Different Worlds,” it is in the Lakota Arts and Identities exhibition.

“I think it’s really important and so relevant and so beautifully done,” Lundgren said. 

Berry’s favorite is a painting called “untitled (Lost in Desert, vultures gathering)” by Harvey Dunn. 

“The way that Harvey Dunn manages to depict this just hot, humid, desolate landscape is just amazing,” Berry said. 

There is a variety of art including sculptures and paintings that could interest students. 

“You might come in here one month and you come in two months later and you’re going to find something different, something new,” Buehner said. 

Currently, the museum is preparing for the South Dakota Governors Sixth Biennial Art Exhibition. The exhibit will be open from Sept. 30. to Jan. 4. 

“There are paintings and sculptures and photography and just all kinds of mediums. I think that will be a really fun exhibition for students to check that one out,” Buehner said. 

According to Buehner, there are 53 pieces of art produced by 48 artists. 

“We have artists from local, Brookings area, we have artists from South Dakota, we have artists from the region and then artists from across the country that we’re exhibiting,” Buehner. 

The museum attracts people outside of the Brookings area. 

“I love the embroidery… You always have to see what Harvey Dunn pieces are on display,” said Marj Kleinjan, an Arlington resident. She has been to the museum multiple times. 

All of these paintings are just a few of the things people can take their selfies with in the next couple weeks. 

The winner of the campaign will be announced on Oct. 7.

“People come in,” Berry said.  “Take selfies with your favorite artwork.”